Steve Stockdale: Here's Something About General Semantics

I’m pleased to announce the online availability of my new book, Here’s Something About General Semantics: A Primer for Making Sense of Your World (ISBN: 978-0-9824645-0-2, 290 pages). You can read excerpts of the book, including the Contents, complete Preface, Notes and Sources, and Index of Names, here: http://thisisnotthat.com/hsgs.html.

The book is available as an electronic book (eBook) in the PDF format, requiring only the free Adobe Acrobat Reader. The file is about 5MB in size, and can be downloaded
directly from the webpage http://thisisnotthat.com/hgsg.html . You can simply click on a link and download the file, provided you follow the instructions on the page.

Here’s Something About GS provides a meaty but digestible introduction to General Semantics, reflecting work I’ve done in learning, teaching, and writing about general semantics for more than 13 years. It explains and applies the GS principles to promote an ongoing awareness of differences that make a difference. Learn how language and other symbols influence how you perceive your world, how you respond to your perceptions, and how you think-and-talk about your responses.

The book advocates an informed, open, and tolerant world view that’s consistent with what we currently know from integrating the sciences, arts, and humanities ... without deference to dogmas, traditions, or what passes for culturally-dependent "common sense."

I’ve included some introductory materials for those who know nothing about GS; some more in-depth explanations and descriptions (regarding the structural differential, abstracting, extensional devices, etc.); some extensions and applications of GS, including published articles, newspaper columns, and presentations; and some history about Alfred Korzybski, the organizations, and some of the people who have crossed paths with the discipline over the years.

It’s filled with examples, quotes, and has over 50 illustrations. It includes 13 pages of Notes and Sources and an Index of Names with over 250 entries. It has links to additional online material to augment the content, including links to more than 150 video clips. It’s written for a general audience, but could be especially useful for teachers who want to introduce GS principles to supplement a secondary school curriculum, or even as a module in a college-level humanities or social sciences course.

As a former student wrote: This class was so much different from any class I've taken in college thus far. In my opinion, it was a class teaching us how to think, rather than what to think.

Please consider forwarding this email or the links to a friend who might be interested in learning about the linguistic, behavioral, and general orientation implications of General Semantics. Feel free to mention it on your blog, post the cover image and link on your social networking page, etc.

Best regards,

Steve Stockdale
Santa Fe, NM